


A Hot Cup of Tea

by moriin



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Friends to Lovers, Gen, Implied Relationships, Platonic Relationships, Reader-Insert, Vague
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-09
Updated: 2017-07-09
Packaged: 2018-11-29 16:01:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,360
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11444259
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moriin/pseuds/moriin
Summary: "What are you afraid of the most?" He looked straight into your eyes, brows furrowed and pupils searching for an honest answer."This is like, one of those deep questions, right?" You teased, trying to lighten up the mood. Although he simply gave you a nod. You thought about that question for a moment. No one had ever really asked you that before, nor did you ever find the need to think about it. Keith stared at you intently, eager to hear your answer. "I guess being a disappointment; to this team, to my family, to myself. I hate being a burden. How about you?"He sighed, turning away from your gaze, as if embarrassed with his answer."I think.... I think I'm afraid to be alone."





	A Hot Cup of Tea

**Author's Note:**

> In which you and Keith have one of those thought-provoking, emotionally-driven, late-night conversations where the bond between you two strengthens.
> 
> A reminder that no one in this castle is ever alone.

Keith had been staring at the ceiling of his bedroom for who knows how many dobashes.... or maybe it was vargas at this point. Time was a concept that never saw eye to eye with Keith. He figured that it was late evening because there was no way that thinking about the inevitabilities of his future is what other humans thought about midday.

There will come a time and a quintent when the universe will no longer need Voltron. Everyone will come back to Earth and resume their previous lives and carryon with a new wit and determination that wasn't there before. But would everyone go their separate ways? As if they had never met?

So where does that leave him? Independence and isolation was what he was used to before, but how long will it take for him to find his family? What if he never finds them?

"I'll just be.... alone," he whispered to no one.

Keith groaned, tossing his bed covers off of him. He couldn't sleep like this with his mind too noisy. Maybe he can tire himself out in the training room.

Dressed in all black, as he usually would when training, he left his bedroom and headed towards the training deck. Only his heels and the sound of Hunk snoring echoed the hallways. It wasn't until he reached the kitchen when he heard that someone else was awake.

"So if we received a distress signal from spores, aren't spores like, plant.... stuff...." you muttered to yourself, squinting at the book. "Gross...."

"_____?" you heard. Startled, you knocked over your cup of tea, or at least you think it's tea.

"A-Ah! Keith! Fancy meeting you here," you stuttered.

"Why are you up so late?" he asked, standing in the doorway.

"Is it late? My circadian rhythm hasn't really adjusted to Altean time yet. I'm just doing a little research on the Olkari and I got hungry. How is it that they look so old, yet their power does not deteriorate!? They're like, bug wizards! Like their power and wisdom only increases with age. I suppose time is not of the essence, huh?" Keith gave you that look that everyone else in the castle gave you when you talked about something you were a little too excited about. With a blush on your cheeks, you cleared your throat. "I'm rambling on again, aren't I?"

"Just a little."

"Well, why are you up so late?"

"I couldn't sleep."

"So you were going to train?"

"Yeah. Maybe I'll fall asleep faster."

"How about you join me instead?" You moved over, patting a seat next to you. "I could use the company. I'll make us more tea."

Keith only stared at the empty seat. No one had ever asked for his company before. It was a new feeling, and it felt nice. He sat down as you prepared the tea. He peaked over at your notes, noticing how much you paid attention to detail. You had the entire anatomy of an Olkari sketched out, labeled and everything.

"You must have been a top student at the Garrison," Keith commented.

"Oh, no, far from it! I mean, I'm no Pidge, but I'm definitely not Lance, either," you joked. "Being out here is just far more interesting than Earth, you know? There are so many things to discover, so many species and homes and-and just things!"

"Don't you miss your family?" he asked, turning to you as you took your seat.

"Of course I do. But I never really got this kind of freedom before. I was smothered and my parents were strict, so it feels nice to be alone."

Keith winced at your words. Nice? To be alone? Who knew that those words could be in the same sentence. You noticed him tense up a bit and wondered if he's missing someone, too.

"Do you miss your family?" you asked.

There was a silence between the two of you, and you instantly regretted your words. You mentally slapped yourself in the face; how could you be so insensitive!?

"Can I ask you something?" he questioned, voice barely a whisper.

"Of course."

"What are you afraid of the most?" He looked straight into your eyes, brows furrowed and pupils searching for an honest answer.

"This is like, one of those deep questions, right?" You teased, trying to lighten up the mood. Although he simply gave you a nod. You thought about that question for a moment. No one had ever really asked you that before, nor did you ever find the need to think about it. Keith stared at you intently, eager to hear your answer. "I guess being a disappointment; to this team, to my family, to myself. I hate being a burden, and feeling like I wasn't enough; like I failed. How about you?"

He sighed, turning away from your gaze, as if embarrassed with his answer.

"I think.... I think I'm afraid to be alone."

With Keith, you normally had to search really hard into his eyes for any sort of emotion that wasn't annoyed. But for once, you didn't have to. His eyes were sad. He was sad. For the first time, he let his walls down and you could see the genuine fear of being alone written on his face. You were startled when you realized that he really believed he would one day be alone, even after all the missions and life-threatening cases all the Paladins, Allura, and Coran went through together.

Keith looked up when he felt your hand hold his. It felt warm, like the cup of tea you made.

"Why do you think you're going to be alone?" you asked.

"When the universe doesn't need Voltron anymore, we're all going to go back to Earth. And then everyone goes their separate ways and gets to go home. But not me. Where does that leave me? What if I'll be searching for a family that isn't even alive!?"

His voice was high pitched and his words were desperate. His greatest fears were slowly becoming reality. His grip on your hand was achingly tight, as if afraid to let you go. When this was all over, he'd lose Allura, he'd lose Shiro, and he'd lose you. 

"Keith, are we friends?" you asked, pulling him away from his thoughts.

"H-Huh?"

"Are we friends?"

"I- Of course we are."

"If I am your friend, then you're not alone."

"But-"

"When all of this Voltron stuff is over, when we go back home, back to Earth, I will still be your friend. You know you can always call me, right?"

"Call you?"

You took his other hand and held both like he was going to slip away. "If you need help finding your family, I will help you. And if you're just lonely and need someone to talk to, I will be there. And if you need me to fly across planets and galaxies just for a hot cup of tea, then I will do that, too."

Keith searched your eyes to find some sort of lie or fault in your words, but found none. He felt his heart beat ease, feeling like he could trust someone for the first time. His breath hitched in his throat when your face leaned closer.

"I am your friend. I will always be here for you. And so is everyone else. We have a bond like no other. We are the Paladins of Voltron after all, right?"

"Yeah."

His expression softened when he continued to look at you. You were a true, genuine friend. He'd never felt safer, here with you, in the kitchen of the Castle of Lions.

"Oh, no. The tea got cold. Maybe we should head to bed."

Keith held onto your hand, refusing to let you stand up.

"Can we stay? Just a little longer?" he asked.

"You want to hear more about the Olkari?" you asked, opening your notes with your free hand.

His lips twitched to a small smile. "Yeah. I'd like that."

He figured that he could get used to your company, the weight of your hand, and a hot cup of tea.


End file.
